SHORT PASSES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18587, 12 October 1928, Page 12

SHORT PASSES.

In an interview at Auckland, T. R. Sheen, although paying a tribute to Benny Osier’s kicking, said that he saw no one in South Africa as good as Cooke. With Cooke, he had no doubt that they would have won the majority of the tests. X *

The total cost of American representation at the Olympic Games was approximately 300,000d01. The main items of expenditure were as. follows: —Charter of ship and transportation, 210'OOOdol: cost of uniforms and athletic equipment and apparatus, 25.000 dol; expenses in Amsterdam, 20,000dol; expenses of winter games and Soccer, 15.000dol; expenses of try-outs, 10,000 dol ; overhead expenses, 10,000dol.

« a x W. S. Rymill, the new golf champion of South Australia, does riot confine himself to one kind of sport. He had already 'won fame as a dashing lefthand batsman, and he is also a very keen yachtsman. As he is comparatively new as a golfing star, more will probably be heard of him yet in this sport. F. Parcutt, of London, must surely be one of fthe most wonderful athletes of all time. He lost his left arm in the war in 1916, but excels at tennis, billiards, cricket and swimming, and is also an accomplished pianist. He is reported to have this season won the batting championship of the South London Cricket League, with an average per innings of 40.2. This would be a fine performance for a physically complete player; for a one-armed man it is marvellous. 3* 55 X Engaged to write accounts of the Englishmen’s matches for the London “ Daily Telegraph,” Warren Bardsley, fine sportsman that he is, asked to be excused on learning that he had been named as one of the Australian selectors. In other words, the international batsman put aside a sum running into some hundreds of pounds to enable him to accept a job for which he will get no material reward. There are a thundering lot of people who would have been content to take the cash and let the credit go (says the Svdney “ Bulletin XXX The machine-like precision of the professional golfer when he is on his game was well illustrated in the final of the. “ News of the World ” professional tourney*. played last month in England. The last pair were C. A. Whitcombe and W_ Cotton, the former winning by 4 and 2. The first nine holes were halved: then Whitcombe came home in 31, finishing with a round of 68 to Conton’s 72 on a course bogeyed at 76. In the second round. Cotton took 32 for the first nine holes, which squared the match. Whitcombe came again, and took the next five holes with a two and four threes. For the thirty-four holes played, the average was twelve under fours—miraculous figures. k 5: A Wellington cricket writer says:— Amongst new blood Petone has secured this season are R. Hope, the ex-Palm-erston North and Nelson player, who was a member of the New Zealand team which toured Australia in the 1925-26 season. Hope is a really good fast bowler, and should fill the gap caused bv Fin Jayson’s transference to Auckland. Ritchie (Dunedin), Hunwiek • (Hamilton) and Smallwood (Auckland) are all new members of * whom good things are expected. There are also hopes that Eckhoff, a wellknown Otago representative, will turn nut for Petone this season. Of the old brigade, S. Brice, E. Smyrk, Reylin and the Nicholls brothers will be on hand again to keep the old flag flying over the Petone oval. 22 52 X oman has invaded the bowling greens as well as the golf links and the <-inder tracks, and the bowlers of Britain are in revolt. In the north of England, the feminine contingent is cutting heavily into the profits from professional tourneys: as a result, the professionals have decided to give up exliilyttcns on public greens and confine themselves to those where women will tjot be allowed to intrude—the publichouse greens, an institution peculiar to the north of England. In days gone by no publichouse in the outskirts of anv oi the big manufacturing towns was complete without its green. For the • price of a pot. the tired wavfarer might refresh himself with bowls*as well as i>eer, there being always one or two gcntlem.cn of no apparent occupation r C/ K , l r !.° oblige him with a game, especially it he was willing to have a little bn on the result. The suave folk who frequent billiard-rooms in the same aerommodating way could show no points to the pub. bowler when it came to! skinning a flat. Mr Ivan Seay, the Canterbury and [ w Zealand representative tennis i player, "has been taken ill, and will pro- j bably not be able to take part in anv ! matches against the Englishmen. As! occupier of second place on the Can-' terbury ranking list, and fourth place | on the New Zealand ladder, he was } practically assured of being chosen to meet the Englishmen in their matches against the South Island at Wilding Park on October 26 and 27, and against New Zealand in the test match at Auckland a week later. K 55 55 “Figures would indicate that swimming is again on the up-grade,” states the annual report of the Canterburv Centre of the New Zealand Amateur Swimming Association. ‘‘The following comparative table is interesting, in that it shows a definite increase in the number of affiliated swimmers in Canterbury in the past season:—Year 1925: Number of clubs 17, number of swimmers 1928: 15, 974. The drop in membership from 1925 to 1927 is explained bv the vigorous cleaning up of club rolls due to the. coming into force of the registration fee.” 1

The "New York Journal” declares that Bobby Jones is at present a greater player than ever before in his brilliant career. He broke the course record recently at Wheaton, “and since then has continued to play better golf than when he won the British open.” In the Walker Cup Jones beat Perkins (British amateur champion), 10 and 9. This cup, by the way, has never been taken out of America since it was established in 1921. 52 2*2 2*2 An Auckland tennis writer ■’ says that for the New Zealand team to play England on November 3, Bartleet, Sturt, Sims and Laurenson, have been invited to go into training. If the selectors go on the ranking list, which is about the only indication of standard at this time of the year, then Bartleet. who ranks second to Geof. Ollivier, will certainly play, and probably Laurenson will also be included. It is unfortunate that the best doubles combination, Sturt and Knott, has been broken by Knott’s absence in Australia. The coming visit of the English cricketers to Australia will be only the beginning of a long series of international tours. Australians go to England in 1930. and South African representatives have been invited to come to the Commonwealth in 1931-32. The West Indians are being asked to play r in Australia in 1930. The only previous visit of the Afrikanders was in 1910-11, and a magnificent side they were. Australia won four of the five tests played on that occasion, but the cricket of the visitors made a great impression. 24 2*2 52 On returning to America from the Olympic Games Charles Paddock, once termed the "fastest human,” definitely announced that he had retired from the cinder path. “I am through as far as running is concerned,” Paddock told newspapermen. "I w’ent over to win or lose. I lost. I think the gong has sounded. I have been running for 15 years and now others can take the field.” His future activities, Paddock said, would be in the moving pictures. He expects to go to Paris early next year to begin acting in pictures in a serious wav. 2*2 2*2 2*2 By winning the Olympic Single Sculls, R. H. Pearce, the Australian representative, became holder of the Philadelphia Gold Challenge Cup, emblematic of the amateur sculling championship of the world. The cup, donated for competition by the Schuylkill Navy, an organisation of which all the rowing clubs along the Schifylkill River in Philadelphia are members, reposes in a bank vault in that city. It was held for the first time by J- B. Kelly, Philadelphia, when he won the Olympic championship in 1920. It can be challenged for on six months’ notice. Others who hfive held it since Kelly are M. Hoover, won at Philadelphia; W. E. Garrett-Gilmore, Philadelphia, won at Duluth; Paul V. Costello, Philadelphia, won at Philadeljpbia; J. Beresford, London, England, won at the 1924 Olympics. Hoover later challenged Beresford for the cup but the English rowing authorities refused to approve the race, and under the rules, it was returned to Philadelphia, its home when not held by any champion oarsman. It now goes to Australia. If challenged, Pearce can name the place for the race if he accepts. If there is no challenge it will remain in Australia until the 1932 Olympic Games. . 2*2 22 2*2 E. a’Beckett, the Victorian righthand bowler and batsman, is the one young bowler who stands a fair to good chance of winning a place in the test teams against England—if the selectors are not mesmerised by the men of many years in the game. a’Beckett bowled admirably against New South Wales last season, fielded tirelessly, and shaped like a batsman. He is distinctly a test match possibility. The chairman of the N.S.W .R.L . Management Committee, Mr R. A. O. Martin, who visited New Zealand to confer with the New Zealand Union regarding the British team’s visit in 1930. and a new agreement for inter-

change of visits with the Dominion, cabled home that the All Blacks will visit New South Wales in July next

rear, the tour to include Queensland and Victoria. One test match against an Australian team, practically certain to be in Svdney. will be played, and probablv tests against Queensland, Victoria, and New South Wales.

Some sound critics in England hold that Lancashire owe their third successive championship to the bowling of E. A. M Donald. the Victorian man of pace. Others, while giving him full credit for his match-winning efforts, hoid that in team-work Lancashire is

superior to any other county. One scribe says: “There arc convincing indications that each player in the Lancs eleven has a personal concern regarding the best way he can serve his team, which means that they support each other to their full ability. It is their team-work that has gained them prominence in the past three seasons.”

With only a week to go before the Englishmen land at Fremantle. Australian cricketers will have to scratch to strike form. The first test is to begin on November 30 in Brisbane, and the only trial for test match candidates will be held on October 19, the dav the tourists open against West Australia at Perth. It will be a game between Australia and the Rest. From the tone of the daily Press, it is evident that ven- ! eration for old age will be ' again the chief motif in the selections. The craze to-day is for “ experience,” whatever that may mean. It wasn’t bothered about much in the days when W. G. Grace was shoved into first-class cricket when he was barely half-way through his teens. The men who picked out Duff and Trumper overlooked their lack of experience.